Halfway through the 2010-2011 season it is hard to already peg the Oilers in last place. I am still holding out hope that they make a better half for themselves and finish somewhere 9-12 in the West.
Trade Deadline:
The Oilers will and have to be sellers. What you really have to do is, you have to sit down with Penner and Hemsky and get a feeling of where their heads are at for the future of their tenure with the club. Sadly and with deep regret, I believe that Hemsky is the odd man out. Penner has turned into a great voice in the dressing room and we need his big body, players like him are very hard to come by. As for Hemsky, he could probably fetch us the most on the trade market, and Hall and Eberle on the wings make him more expendable.
As far as the rest of the team goes, JF Jacques has to go, probably via waivers (the Oilers gave him his one year chance and he has flunked). One of either Steve MaCintyre or Zach Stortini will be shipped out, or placed on waivers. I think the idea of trading Kurtis Foster to Montreal is golden, they would love him in hab-land. Vandermeer could also get you a 3rd or 4th round pick from a playoff team looking for defensive depth.
At the Draft:
If the Oilers are picking in the the top ten, I wouldn't be surprised in the least if they traded their pick. Its a weaker draft then most and they could pick up a high end defensman or a top line face off wizard centerman. Of course they would have to package that pick with a roster player to make it that much juicier, so I could see Cogliano or Brule being thrown in for extra value. I could see them trading for Brad Richards and signing him.
As far as other moves at the draft, probably not much, if not trading more unusable pieces currently on the team for depth draft picks. Its all about building up your farm system to pump out solid NHLers.
Free Agency:
Ryan Jones will be priority numero uno. By seasons end he will be in the mid teens for goals, so signing him in around the $1.5 million mark should be sufficient. The Oilers, like last summer, probably wont go after any of the real big fish, but will look to add some solid depth guys. Curtis Glencross, Scottie Upshall, and Ben Eager could be some good targets. Our defense will need some pieces, and as I don't see Tambellini going after big names like Markov or Kaberle, some good moves could be made with names like Eric Brewer, Ed Jovanovski, Jan Hejda, Christian Ehrhoff, and Chris Phillips floating around.
The Souray Ordeal:
Once the season has finished and rosters reset, the Oilers will recall Sheldon Souray, without him having to go thru re-entry waivers. After that, it will be an all out SALE. No reasonable offer refused....And most likely no one will bite. So then with only One year left on his contract, the Oilers might just look at buying him out, or once again, burying him in the minors for one more season. Either way, Sheldon Souray will never be seen in Oilers silks ever again. Which most of us already knew.
My 2011-2012 Lineup:
Taylor Hall Brad Richards Jordan Eberle
Dustin Penner Sam Gagner Ales Hemsky
Curtis Glencross Shawn Horcoff Magnus Paarjarvi
Ben Eager Ryan O'Marra Ryan Jones
Ryan Whitney Chris Phillips
Tom Gilbert Teddy Peckham
Jeff Petry Ladislav Smid
Nikolai Khabiboulin
Devan Dubnyk
